My wolf paid no mind to Janelle''s frantic rambling. "You should''ve thought twice before attacking again," he growled, his voice low and dangerous.


    I tightened my grip around his neck onest time, tasting the metallic tang of blood as it mixed with the adrenaline coursing through me. Beneath me, he writhed and twisted, desperate to break free, but I had him firmly pinned on his side. His ws swiped through the air, but they never connected with my skin. Janelle''s agonized cries pierced the tense air once more, only fueling my wolf''s fury. With a final snap of his powerful jaws and a sharp twist of the neck, he silenced her screams. Janelle let out a scream of pain, then turned her fury toward me.


    This time, I shifted back into my human form, needing to face her and speak directly.


    "How could you?" she spat, her voice trembling with rage and disbelief. "You know what a mate means to us-how vital that bond is to everyone who''s ever been alone, without family or a ce to call home. You should understand that better than anyone."


    Shey draped across her mate''s chest, his form shifting back to human as the transformationpleted fully.


    "I do understand what a mate means," I replied, my voice steady butced with bitterness. "My first mate was selfish-a woman who cared for no one but herself. If she truly valued me and the mate bond, none of this would have happened. But she made her choice, and she paid for it with her life. The goddess deemed me worthy of a second mate. My second mate takes that bond seriously. She fights by my side for our pack. So spare me the sentimental crap about your mate being so great. If he was really that amazing, he would have taken you away from this ce or at least tried to be part of this pack. He would have given you a home and cared for you instead of going along with whatever ridiculous scheme this was. ude isn''t even here anymore-so why carry on his n?"


    I barely cared about her response; my words were a distraction while I searched desperately for my mate in my mind.


    "How dare you speak of my mate that way! He was better than you''ll ever be," Janelle shouted, her fury boiling over. "He fought for what he believed in, even if it meant staying outside a normal pack.”


    She was so close, her face inches from mine, yelling wildly. I grabbed her wrist firmly and threw her to the ground. I wasn''t in the mood to tolerate her nonsense any longer. My priority was finding my mate. Though it seemed like she wasn''t hurt anymore, the fact that I couldn''t see her filled me with unease.


    Janelle pushed herself up, ring at me. "You could''ve been great. You could''ve been one of us. You could''ve led your own pack, held the power of an alpha! But no -you chose to be a lowly servant. You were never good enough for Amy. That''s why she never mated with you, never marked you. She knew you were weak and unworthy!"


    I opened my mouth to respond, but before I could speak, a fist connected with Janelle''s face. She spun and crashed to the ground.


    "If you ever so much as speak to my mate again, I will kill you!" Greta stood over Janelle, her eyes zing with a fierce, murderous light.


    Despite the chaos, I couldn''t help but feel a rush of heat at the sight. It waspletely inappropriate wrong time, wrong ce-but I couldn''t turn off the feeling. For the first time since we met, Greta had stood up for me. She had called me her mate, right in front of someone else.


    I stepped forward, grabbing her hand to pull her up. I pressed her body close against mine, wrapping an arm around her waist. My other hand tangled in her hair as I crushed my lips to hers. None of it mattered—the forest around us, the fact that we were naked, or the unknown number of eyes watching. I needed her close, needed to feel every inch of her.


    When I finally pulled back, I looked deep into Greta''s eyes. "Don''t listen to her. We need to get home and clean up. We have a pup waiting for us."


    Greta''s eyes sparkled with warmth.


    "You already have a pup?” Janelle shrieked from the ground, breaking the moment. "That was fast! You didn''t even give Amy a chance to rest or mourn her before you went off and got another she-wolf pregnant!"


    Greta moved to pull away from me, ready to tear into Janelle again, but I held her firmly, drawing her face back to mine. “Don''t. She''s not worth your anger, your time, or your energy. Let''s go check on Grant and Jensen and see if we can head home."


    We stood there, the tension thick in the air, but for the first time in a long while, I felt a flicker of hope.